March 6, 2011
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The 24th-ranked University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team defeated No. 60 Northwestern, 6-1 Sunday at the Eck Tennis Pavilion in Notre Dame, Ind. Freshman Greg Andrews (Gull Lake, Mich./Pine-Richland) clinched the match with a win at No. 4 singles.
The Wildcats began the match with an early 1-0 lead over the Irish, winning at the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles positions. At first doubles, junior Niall Fitzgerald (Wicklow, Ireland/Blackrock College) and sophomore Spencer Talmadge (Hillsborough, Calif./Junipero Serra) were downed by Joshua Graves and Spencer Wolf in an 8-4 decision.
Senior captain Tyler Davis (Nashville, Tenn./Father Ryan) and Andrews teamed up at third doubles. The pair earned an early 4-1 lead over Raleigh Smith and Chris Jackman and continued their strong play to down the Wildcat tandem, 8-4.
With the doubles matches split, the point came down to second doubles. Senior Stephen Havens (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) and junior Casey Watt (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) battled Andrew McCarthy and Tobias Reitz, but the pair was unable to grab a win, dropping a 9-7 decision.
Moving into the singles segment, No. 124 Havens handled Northwestern’s Wolf at No. 2. The senior notched 6-2 wins in straight sets, moving his 2011 dual record to 5-7.
Daniel Stahl (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) helped the Irish grab a 2-1 lead as he defeated McCarthy in consecutive 6-4 sets. The senior concluded the weekend with a perfect 2-0 record. In addition to his victory over McCarthy, he downed 80th-ranked Alexis Klegou during Friday’s match versus No. 18 Texas A&M.
Blas Moros (Boca Raton, Fla./Pine Crest) tacked onto the Irish lead as the sophomore defeated Raleigh Smith in a two-set match (6-2, 7-5) at fifth singles. Moros improved his 2011 dual season record to 6-2.
At No. 4, Andrews clinched the match for the Irish. The freshman continued his solid contribution to the team as he downed Reitz in straight sets, 7-5, 6-2.
The Irish kept battling as Watt won a first-set tiebreak, 7-6 (7-2) and claimed the second set, 6-4 to move the score to 5-1.
Senior David Anderson (Sandwich, Mass./Sandwich) concluded the match in a three-set match. Anderson dropped the first set, 7-6 (6), before winning the second and third sets, 6-7 (4), 1-0 (8).
The Irish challenge No. 4 Illinois Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. (ET) at the Eck Tennis Pavilion in Notre Dame, Ind.
No. 21 Notre Dame, 6 No. 60 Northwestern, 1
Singles:
No. 1 No. 64 Casey Watt (ND) def.Joshua Graves (NU), 7-6 (7-2), 6-4
No. 2 No. 124 Stephen Havens (ND) def. Spencer Wolf (NU), 6-2, 6-2
No. 3 Daniel Stahl (ND) def. Andrew McCarthy (NU), 6-4, 6-4
No. 4 Greg Andrews (ND) def.Tobias Reitz (NU), 7-5, 6-2
No. 5 Blas Moros (ND) def. Raleigh Smith (NU), 6-2, 7-5
No. 6 David Anderson (ND) def. Chris Jackman (NU), 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-6), 1-0 (10-8)
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 5, 4, 1, 6
Doubles:
No. 1 Joshua Graves/Spencer Wolf (NU) def. Niall Fitzgerald/Spencer Talmadge (ND), 8-4
No. 2 Andrew McCarthy/Tobias Reitz (NU) def. Casey Watt/Stephen Havens (ND), 9-7
No. 3 Tyler Davis/Greg Andrews (ND) def. Raleigh Smith/Chris Jackman (NU), 8-4
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2
–ND–